News
‘Scary needles’ is more than just a fear for kids with difficult IV insertion
Ask ten children if they like needles, and you’ll likely get ten emphatic ‘no’ responses. But what about when that fear of needles is more than mild anxiety but is born from the trauma of 10 - 15 unsuccessful intravenous (IV) insertion attempts at a time? ...
It’s tiny, but this ‘master organ’ controls your hormones and your health
Research Pulse podcast Season 3 Episode 6 In this episode of Research Pulse, we learn about the pituitary gland, an organ in your brain which controls the key hormones that keep you healthy. We speak to endocrinologist Associate Professor Sunita De Sousa, Senior...
More Than Medicine: The Volunteers Who Make Healing Possible
During National Volunteer Week, we are proud to celebrate the dedicated individuals who generously give their time to support the CALHN community. Their contributions are as diverse as they are meaningful, from offering comfort and companionship to patients on the...
When you can’t take the Nurse out of Volunteer Sue
Let’s be honest, it is a tough call not to feature all of CALHN’s 360 volunteers as part of National Volunteer Week. Although when you have the good fortune to meet Sue, you realise she is worth spotlighting. Former Nurse Sue volunteers at the CALHN’s Hampstead...
300 and counting: Royal Adelaide Hospital leads landmark cancer therapy study
A long-term patient study has been quietly keeping track of radiation therapy results in paediatric, adolescent, young adult, and rare adult tumour patients … until now. Radiation Oncologist at CALHN’s Royal Adelaide Hospital, Associate Professor Hien Le, proudly...
Learn from the past, prepare for the future: this is epidemiology
Research Pulse podcast Season 3 Episode 5 CALHN is a large health network, with 15,000-plus clinical and non-clinical staff members supporting over one million consumer visits to our hospitals and services every year. While daily clinical operations focus on the...
How art, AI and innovation are transforming cancer care at the Royal Adelaide Hospital
The radiation oncology unit at the Royal Adelaide Hospital (RAH) might seem like a place of complex machines and intimidating procedures. But for Associate Professor Michael Douglass, Principal Medical Physicist at RAH, it’s a space of innovation, creativity, and...
New trial starts at the RAH: could cycling during kidney dialysis protect the heart?
Dialysis is a life-saving therapy for patients with kidney disease – but it does come with some side-effects. A new trial is looking at whether cycling during dialysis could prevent an unwanted impact on heart health. Patient Will signed up to be a trial...
Beyond ‘the bends’: 4,000 patients over 40 years at the RAH’s hyperbaric chambers
CALHN Our People Season 2 Episode 4 Former Navy Clearance Diver Troy Pudney is Senior Hyperbaric Chamber Supervisor at the RAH. “Each session is called a dive, reflecting the physics of the treatment and its diving heritage,” says Troy. In 2024, Adelaide did more...
Beyond ‘the bends’: 4,000 patients over 40 years at the RAH’s hyperbaric chambers
If you’re a scuba diver or reader of adventure novels, you may have heard of ‘the bends’ – a dangerous condition that results from ascending too rapidly from deep water to the surface. The bends is treated by placing patients in a pressurised room called a...
The hospital-based team that supports GPs in delivering high quality care
CALHN Our People Season 2 Episode 3 As a former GP, Dr Caitlin Sum knows how busy it gets in general practise clinics. In her current role as GP Integration Officer, she's able to help. Along with colleagues based at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, Caitlin...
Why hormones rule your life – and how new research can help
Have you ever felt off-colour and explained it away as "oh, it's just my hormones"? Hormone fluctuations are linked with a whole range of health experiences. But while hormone levels do naturally vary over time, significant disruption in hormones can be very...
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